Lessons of The Past
by Meredith McGarrett
Summary: Based on season 5, episode 23 - Mo'o 'olelo Pu. "One of our own, Kono Kalakaua, is lost in sea..." This is my first fanfic for Hawaii Five-0. Mostly Kono/Chin


**Lessons of The Past**

 ** _Based on: Season 5: Episode 23 - Mo'o 'olelo Pu_**

* * *

"Kono, you sure you wanna do this?"

"Yes."

Adam leaned against the door, glancing at Kono concernedly.

Adam didn't look like he believes her so she said it for another time. Kono thinks that he's being overprotective of her and fact is, he is being overprotective by the way Adam's acting. But it's not like he needs to be. "Yeah, I'm positive." Kono shortly looked up as she continued to pack a bag with things she will take with her on the trip. She'd packed clothes, some camping gear in case she needed it. Kono had everything planned. She wanted to sail around the Hawaiian Islands, maybe make one or stops at some deserted beach. Maybe she was going to visit Hulopoe Bay, a beach on Lanai or explore the Napali Coast of Kauai from sea…

Suddenly she stopped in the middle of what she was doing and stepped over to Adam.

"I know you're worried."

She put her hand on his cheek. He was looking right at her. She knew he was worried about her. But he doesn't need to be. She was doing great. "But there no need for you to be worried. I know how navigate with the help of the stars. I am prepared. This isn't my first time out there. The water is like my favourite element, if you know what I mean." Kono chuckled slightly. "Just let me do this. Trust me."

"Deal." Adam finally gave in.

Adam kissed her. "I will miss you, you know that, right?"

"I know… But it's only four days, a week tops." Kono assured him. "You'll see me soon enough. A week isn't that long, if you think about it more closely."

"You might be right about that."

Adam laughed and embraced her. Kono leaned against him, breathed in his scent.

This was going to be her trip. A trip to find herself… She liked to think of it like that because it was that a little bit. She was looking forward to this trip. Her mother's destiny had become her destiny… She wasn't doing this just to honor her mother. Kono also did that solo outrigger trip for herself before she was going to be Kono Noshimuri. She doesn't have any doubts or something about the upcoming wedding and marriage. It was just that she needed some time to herself. An outrigger trip was the right thing to do this. Then she is going to be outside, in the nature, away from her stressing job as a police officer working for Steve McGarrett.

Then, someone was at the front door.

"I'll go open it. You just do this." He pointed at Kono's open closet. Kono only nodded.

In this moment, her cousin Chin entered the room. "Hey, coz, how are you doing?" He asked. "I'm great, thanks for the concern but I'm good. And I am ready for this, guys. This, right here, is my legacy. This is what I want to do in the honor of my mother. I am going on this solo outrigger trip." Chin sighed and exchanged glances with Kono's fiancé Adam. They were going to get married soon, sometime after the solo trip Kono had planned for herself. "I'm ready. I'm going to do this." She assured them.

"I'll be fine. This isn't my first time out on the water. Don't try and talk me out of it."

"Okay, okay, okay." Chin raised his hands. "Relax, coz, I am not here to try and talk you out of this major trip. In fact, I wanted to tell you that I like what you're doing." Kono smiled at him for a moment. He then looked over to Adam Noshimuri.

"Can you give us a minute?" He asked.

"That's absolutely no problem. I'll be out of your hair in a second." Adam said and with that he left the room. So that only leaves Chin and Kono in this room. They were alone.

"Really, you are not here to try and talk me out of it?" She asked.

"No, I am not." Chin said bluntly. "I admire you for it, Kono. It's a great thing to do, to do what your mother dreamt of doing but never got to do it. But please, take this with you. So you can keep in contact with us if something unexpected is to happen." Kono chuckled. Chin handed her radio so that she could keep in touch. "Oh, come here, coz." She only replied before she just hugged him. "Thanks for your support, I guess. But why are you thinking that something unexpected will happen?" She asked. "Because, you know we're Five-0, also known as magnets to dangerous situations. That's why I want you to be careful, Kono." "Of course I'll be careful, Chin. I know my way around. My mother has taught me all those things I need to know."

"She taught you how to sail and navigate with the help of stars and she also taught you how to paddle. I remember that, Kono. You once told me about it." Chin replied.

"You see that's what I mean."

Both of them chuckled when they entered the living room. Adam was sitting on the couch and skimmed through a magazine. But he put that away when he saw Chin Ho Kelly and Kono Kalakaua enter the room. He smiled at Kono who walked over and sat down next to him. "Chin, come on, sit down for a moment."

"Ahem, no, thanks – I am good. Thanks though."

He laughed nervously. A nervous feeling in the pit of his stomach told him that they were in for an emotional rollercoaster. Some kind of catastrophe would happen. Then his phone rang, interrupting the comfortable silence. It was McGarrett calling him with some news about a case Five-0 as currently investigating. He quickly walked outside.

"Hello, this is Chin Ho." He answered his cell.

"So you got something? Okay, I am on my way now."

He quickly informed Adam and Kono that he had been called away for work but Kono knew how this was. Normally, she was on duty as well but now, with her planning a solo sail around the Hawaiian Islands she wasn't because she's got some preparation to do.

* * *

"I didn't know you were coming." Kono was surprise when saw her father and her mother. "You know she wouldn't have missed in the world." Her father said, motioning to his wife. The woman in the wheelchair stayed silent. Chin explained to the others standing on the sandy beach: "Her mother had an aneurysm a few years back." Kono kneeled down so that she was on her mother's level. "She's beautiful, isn't she?" She was referring to the outrigger boat.

"I'm doing this, mom." Kono's voice broke when she saw this. Her mom put her hand on top of Kono's hand. Kono's heartbeat instantly accelerated a bit.

Kamekona blew through a horn made out of a shell.

The water was turquoise and the sun shone at the ocean…

"She's very proud of you." Her father assured her, putting a hand on Kono's shoulder. Kono said something in the Hawaiian language. Then Kono sets sails. Kono waved to her people who standing on the beach to see her off. Even her mother and her father came to see this moment, the moment where Kono sets sails. It was a warm day. The sky was blue and there wasn't a single cloud to see on the sky. Kono laughed happily. Right now she was feeling free, like she could do anything. She could make out there beach where she started from. Her entire team buddies from Five-0 were standing there. Adam. Her parents were there to see her off.

Her father told her that her mother wouldn't have missed this.

Kamekona was there as well, Max and Charlie Fong… Everyone was there. It was just for a few days… Then she turned around and faced the wide ocean in front of her. Wind blew through her hair, the horizon was clear.

Everything seems like it is supposed to be.

The fresh, floral air energized her. The warm, tranquil waters refreshed her. The breathtaking, natural beauty renews you. She took a look around. The water of the Pacific Ocean was like glass, you could see right through it. Near the shores were coral reefs. There's no place on earth like Hawaii. She knew that. This was home for her.

She grew up here in Hawaii. This is her home.

* * *

Chin was standing there, looking at the ocean. He saw the big grey wall at the end of the horizon. He saw the big clouds on the sky and couldn't help but worry. He didn't hear Steve calling for him. "Chin." When Steve saw that Chin most likely hasn't heard him, he called his name again. "Chin." He reiterated. That he heard and slowly he turned around, seeing that Grover was standing next to Steve.

"You alright, man?" He asked when he saw Chin's worried and concerned.

"Yeah, yeah it just looks like she storm changed course." He couldn't help but worry about his cousin. "Kono said she was going around it. She'll be fine." Steve assured him.

"Yeah." Chin nodded shortly.

"She's gonna be fine." He repeated as Grover and Chin walked away from the coastline. After some time, time that he spent in his office at Five-0 Headquarters, his cell phone rang. He flinched at the sound because he instantly knew that something was wrong and he was right.

* * *

There was a storm brewing she hits a patch of wild weather on the day she was sailing back to Oahu and must fight to stay alive. She'd made half of her way when everything happened. Suddenly, the color of the sky changed. It got really dark when Kono looked up. Water splashed against her boat. It rained. She tried to secure the boat. And Kono only noticed it way too late. It came as a total surprise for her. So reacting for her was very difficult. The storm made it really difficult for her to react. She should have listened to the weather forecast yesterday. She should have, she told herself for a moment but soon she had to admit that doing this not helped her a bit.

The boat was getting unstable. The water seemed like it was out to get her. Normally, she didn't fear the ocean. She had great respect for it but fear… But right now she was scared that this wouldn't end very well for her. How come that her solo outrigger trip around the Hawaiian Islands in honor of her mother goes from a great, sunny and relaxing day on the water to a day like this where the water was dark and wild, when there are waves that are one to two meters.

She can't even exactly make out the horizon which, if she was honest, scared her a little bit. Her gaze went to her surfboard. She had taken it with her.

Why, she didn't know.

Maybe it was because she planned to stop on some Hawaiian Island to surf.

Oahu of course, Maui, Lanai, Molokai, Big Island and Kauai – she even planned to sail around Kahoolawe, an island that isn't open for general public. But right now, all she wanted to was find a safe place to anchor. That was a place that won't be easy to find. She tried to get a plan of where she was but she's lost orientation. All the wind and the storm, the water and the waves crashing down on her boat caused her to go disorientated. Thunder donnered loudly in a distance… She tried to figure out where to go. But it was so windy, the boat went from one side to another. Kono grabbed the radio that was in a waterproof bag. She was sure that her boat would sink at some point so she wanted to make sure that she wasn't aboard when it is gonna happen. But before she can think for another time, a big wave comes and throws her off the boat.

But luckily, she saw her surfboard floating around.

She swam over to it and put the bag with the radio on it. Then she got on the board, sitting up. Thunder rumbled loudly. She opened the bag as soon as the water got calmer. She took out the radio. It was like her life insurance. "Please, work." She thought to herself. Then the screen lit up. She typed Chin's number as soon as the screen blinked.

"Chin?" She called into the telephone.

Chin immediately answered the phone when he saw it was Kono. In that moment he knew that Kono was in trouble. "Chin, I need help." She called out loudly. "Kono, I can barely hear you." She replied, now he officially was worried about Kono's whereabouts. "Chin, I got …" Then she stopped mid-sentence. "Kono?!" Chin called out panicky.

"Kono?" Kono's radio fell into the water.

And she dove into the water, wanting to get it back.

She needed this radio damn it. But she couldn't find it so she came back to the surface. She had trouble making out her surfboard. Without it, she was royally screwed. She looked around, trying not to panic because that wouldn't help matters very much. She swam over to it as fast as she could but when she reached it a wave came nearer and Kono just knew what was going to happen next. "Uggh, no, no, no…" She screeched in panic as the wave rolled over her causing her to lose grip of her surfboard. When she had got it back under control, she laughed at absurdity of her current situation.

"Wow, you don't like the weather in Hawaii in ten minutes." She chuckled. Thunder rumbled, rain splashed onto her vulnerable body. She was fighting to stay alive.

* * *

 _Kono left the house and walked over the patio. She saw that her mother was once again working on building an outrigger boat. It was almost finished. Kono came nearer to the boat and put her hand on the wood and inspected it. Kono kneeled down next to the boat. Then she suddenly asked: "You sure about this, mom?" Her mother's eyes sparkled as she eyed her daughter. "I've never been more sure about something, Kono." Her mother answered with a smile. "Even marrying your father took some persuading." Her mother replied with a happy smile, trying to distract Kono from the original topic but Kono knew what her mother was trying to do. "I mean it." Kono replied as she watched what her mother was doing._

 _"_ _The weather's been bad this season." Kono countered._

 _"_ _No matter what time of year I go, Kono…" Then she said something in Hawaiian. "Good weather comes. Bad weather comes too." Kono translated her mother's old saying. "It's true." Her mother confirmed._

 _"_ _You have a saying for everything, don't you?" Kono suddenly said, chuckling._

 _"_ _Not me, our people." Her mother corrected. "I'm going to be alright. Ever since I was a_ keiki _, I wanted to take this journey. You know that, Kono. This is my destiny and I am finally ready for it…" But then it came different… Her mother suffered from an aneurysm in her brain that ruptured. The surgeons managed to save her but she would never be like she was before this happened…_

* * *

"Steve, I just heard from Kono, she sounds bad." Chin said after dialing Steve's number after he couldn't reach Kono. All he heard was the dial tone which was bad, very bad in fact. He had a very bad feeling. Something was just not right.

"Alright, I'll call the Coast Guard." Steve responded immediately. He was worried about Kono as well.

As Five-0 searches for Kono, at the same time, they investigate a man busted for cooking meth who claims he received a threat on his son's life if he didn't continue making the drug. "We're requesting help. One of our own, Kono Kalakaua is lost in sea." Steve McGarrett announced over radio, wanting Search and Rescue to help them search for Kono. Chin and the others were extremely worried after Chin got that call from Kono and has not been able to contact her ever since. And when looking at the storm that was going on outside, they thought it was best to do start a rescue mission to get their friend back safely.

It sure as hell wasn't safe out on the ocean right now. Right now, the ocean was dangerous.

They were in room that was chock-full with monitors that were recording some kind of data or coordinates. "Last radio contact was fourteen hours ago. We think she is in trouble due to the storm." He continued when two coast guards came through the door.

"Commander, weather's passing and helicopters are ready to go." Another man said, presumably a coast guard said.

"Alright, let's move." Steve ordered his crew.

Soon, all of his were in one helicopter and they started taking off. But the coast guard also sent one with his people which means there are two helicopters out there searching right now. One was going north and the other one was going south. They were in radio contact. Chin was holding a binocular in his hand, he was looking for Kono's boat. It seemed like it was night. The sky was so dark and cloudy. The helicopter had red warning lights on so that other planes or helicopters would see it. The rotors rotating made a lot of noise. Some people were talking over radio.

But Chin only concentrated on the ocean. Suddenly Danny called out.

"Chin. I see something."

That got Chin's attention immediately.

"I see a ship wreck but there aren't any signs of Kono."

"What about the paddleboard? Is it there?" Chin asked instantly. "No, negative, I don't see it there. Probably is it floating somewhere around here, probably with Kono. We find the board, we find Kono." Danny answered after he checked that with the help of the binocular. "She's alive, Chin. And we're going to find her. And I think you're right, Danny." Steve assured him. Then after a while someone said over radio: "Coast guard 6-578 is returning to base." "We can't go back now, we've gotta do one more pass. We haven't found Kono yet. She's out there somewhere." Chin answered. "It's at least twenty minutes back to base and we've got not enough fuel, I am sorry but we need to return to base now." The man on the other end said.

Chin sighed.

"This is Coast Guard rescue 6-578 inbound, forty miles off the field, returning to base to refuel."

* * *

It was dark. Kono couldn't see anything and that was her biggest problem because how is she going to get back to Hawaii if she can't see where land is or not. She lay in a face-down position on her surfboard. It was getting colder the longer she was out here. "Where are you Hawaii?" She asked in a scared voice. But she was lucky that the water was a lot calmer because if it was not she would have had a real problem. But she already did have a problem that's gonna be quite difficult to solve considering her current state.

She just hoped that Chin had informed the others and that they've sent Search and Rescue.

Kono really hoped for that.

Kono then remembered a memory from her childhood and that was helping her. She breathed heavily.

She slowly turned around so that she was looking at the sky. She could see the stars. "Nahiko… ten… twenty degrees..." Then she said something in the Hawaiian language. After she finished reading from the stars she turned back on her stomach and started paddling. "I'm back on track, mom." She said, she was glad that she remembered this.

* * *

 _Kono's mother was still up although it was very late in the evening. She was learning from the sky and the stars. With the help of them she'll be able to coordinate her boat without the help of a map. She held a compass in her hand. The palm trees rustled quietly, as did the ocean. Kono's family had a house near the ocean. What her mother didn't know was that Kono was still awake. Little Kono walked quietly over the floors until she reached the patio._

 _"_ _Kono? You should be in bed, sweetheart." Her mother said as she got view of her daughter._

 _Kono was standing there, barefoot and in her pyjamas. "What are you doing?" She asked curiously and inquiring. She couldn't sleep right now. She had no idea why she couldn't sleep. Kono's mother smiled at her daughter. There was a small camp fire flickering and throwing shadows at the house._

 _"_ _Come here, Kono." Her daughter walked over to her and sat down on her lap. Both of them looked at the sky when Kono's mother started to explain what she was doing here. "I'm learning from the sky, Kono. When I set sails someday everything I need to know will be right up there."_

 _Kono didn't respond._

* * *

 _"_ _Hands in the water, Kono…" Her mother called as she was supervising her. "Ankles together... Keep trying, just like that. Little extension, shallow stroke…" She advised her. Kono lay on her surfboard that was longer than she, and paddled. "Keep your feet together and you can paddle forever." Her mother smiled. Little Kono was smiling as well. She was doing her job very well. The water was calm, ideal to practice paddling. Kono's mother observed Kono's technique and when she saw that her daughter lost balance and was about to fall into the water, she was right there to calm her down and assure her that she was okay._

 _"_ _That's it. Good girl. It's okay." And she lifted Kono up and put her back down on the surfboard._

 _Suddenly there was a bird chirping that caught Kono's attention._

 _After it caught Kono's attention it also caught her mother's attention. "You see that_ koaki _, Kono?" Her mother asked. "It is fine… the bird always heads for land with long and graceful strokes. That's how we do it right?" She looked at her daughter for agreement. She smiled as she looked at Kono._

 _"_ _You ready?" She asked. "Yes." Kono said with a strong voice._

 _"_ _I'm flying, mom, I'm flying." She called out enthusiastically. Kono's mother laughed happily when she saw that her daughter was succeeding. "You're flying, Kono. Great job…" Very far away, Kono and her mother could hear the breaking waters. It was relaxing. It was just them on the water. There were no other surfers on this beach … "I'm flying." Kono exclaimed happily. "That's it, Kono. Keep going." She could hear the happiness in her voice._

 _"_ _You got this."_

* * *

Kono continued to paddle. At some point, in the early morning she stopped to make a pause. She sat upright and reached for the bottle of water she had taken with her. She was drained. But she wasn't thinking about giving up. Either she makes it or she goes down fighting. Another option wasn't open for her.

Then she noticed a chirping of a Hawaiian bird and her mind flashed back to something what happened years ago – a memory of her childhood.

She looked up and a small smile graced her lips. Then she started to paddle with long and graceful strokes, just like her mother had taught her. She smiled. "I'm flying, mom. You see this?" She asked into the ocean.

"I'm flying." She just keeps on paddling.

"I'm flying, mom, I'm flying."

Kono reached land in the early morning. She used her las to strength to paddle to the beach. Kono really was exhausted and tired. She made her way to the nearest road. She was barefoot but she didn't care. All she wanted was to be with her family again. That was her goal and she worked toward it. She wasn't giving up.

She hasn't given up out there in the water so she sure as hell won't be giving up here.

* * *

She reached a dirt road. With slow steps she walked, not exactly knowing where she was going, but hoping that a car would see in what kind of state she was and therefore calling an ambulance because God knows she needs medical help. She was pretty sure she was dehydrated. When she saw a car coming her way, she was so relieved. She sank to the ground and helplessly, she stretched out one arm to tell the driver that she was in dire need of help.

Luckily, the car stopped when the driver got view of her. Then a door opened and Kono faintly heard someone telling someone else that they need an ambulance now. A woman knelt down beside her.

"Hello, can you tell me your name?" She heard her asking. "Can you hear me?" But before Kono was able to respond in any way, she lost consciousness. She got pulled into darkness, slowly until there was nothing but black. The woman, who had first responded, now called her husband's name. Her voice sounded scared.

"Jack, you need to come." His wife screeched, with oncoming panic in her voice. Her husband knew what they should do since he was a doctor. That was a lucky coincidence.

"Daddy …" A little Hawaiian girl in the car asked, frightened.

"Stay in the car, Lulani. Mommy and Daddy will be back very soon." After his girl nodded, he opened the door and called over to his wife. "What's going on?" He called back, pulling out a cell phone as he was evaluating the scene. His wife was helping a young woman who lay there, seemingly unconscious. "You need to come over, Jack. She needs medical help." He immediately responded. After securing her vital functions and feeling her pulse, which was a bit slower than usual but given her current situation it was as good as it could get, he reached for his phone to call for help.

He wanted to inform Emergency Medical Services so that they would send an ambulance.

He called 911 and waited impatiently for the emergency dispatch to respond. They were walking on borrowed time. "This is Dr. Jack Makani. I've a got a local female, approximately thirty years old. She appears to be mildly to moderate hypothermic." After a pause he said: "She hasn't got any ID on her." They wanted to know her but he couldn't give them one because he didn't know her name. There wasn't any ID on her.

After running down the medical fact on his patient, gave them their current location which was not an easy thing to do.

"I need an ambulance at the road somewhere along the North Shore."

After he finished talking to emergency dispatch, he turned his attention back to his patient. Then he noticed that she was all wet. It seems like the patient had been in the water for a prolonged time. He hoped that ambulance would hurry up.

In the meantime, he opened the back of his car to look whether there is a warming blanket or something in his first aid kit.

Right now they would need a warming blanket like that. And he had luck and soon he found what he was looking for. He put the warming blanket around Kono's body to keep it warm and continued to monitor her vitals. After some time that feels like an eternity since they are literally in the middle of nowhere on Oahu, they heard sirens sounding in a distance. But there was only one street going to this point which means that that is the ambulance they called for.

"Will you sit with her?" He asked his wife who only nodded in reply. "I'll go meet the ambulance to point them toward us."

With that he disappeared down the road.

Soon, he saw the ambulance coming from behind a curve. From where he was standing he could see and hear the ocean.

He stood in the middle of the street, raising both of his arms above the head and signaled the ambulance to stop in front of him and the showed him which way to go. "What do we have?" The paramedic asked as he climbed out of the car, carrying a bag containing medical supplies.

* * *

The rest of Five-0 came just back from their search for Kono. It wasn't successful. They still haven't found her and they grew more and more worried about their friend and colleague. Commander Steve McGarrett was talking on his phone while he was pacing up and down. The orange helicopter of the Coast Guard was back in the hangar. Chin Ho Kelly was worried. After losing his wife, he couldn't imagine what it would be like to lose Kono as well. She was his only blood-relative that was still alive.

A ringing phone snapped him back into the harsh reality.

He looked at the screen before answering it. He hoped it was going to be good news and not someone telling him it was too late to do something because he's been there when they called time of death when his wife died.

Chin doesn't want to go through the same with his cousin he grew up with, the cousin that was like a sister to him. McGarrett looked over at him, concerned.

"Where?"

He asked instantly after he relaxed almost invisibly, after hearing what they had to say to him. Then after hearing the answer, he breathed a sigh of relief. His cousin would be okay. She wasn't floating around somewhere in the middle of the goddamned ocean. If one could survive this, it was his cousin. And once again, he was proven right.

He smiled shortly at McGarrett to assure him that everything was okay. He seemed to get the message. "Thank you." He said with gratitude.

"Thank you." He replied. "Who was that?" Steve walked over to him as soon as he hung up the phone. "Who was it?" Steve pressed, preparing for news on Kono's whereabouts. "The hospital called. Kono's safe." Steve smiled happily. "That's good." He responded. "Yeah, it is." Chin agreed with him. "Can you inform the others? I want to go see Kono, just to check up on her." Chin told him. Steve nodded, he understood that perfectly. He wanted to make sure that Kono was okay, to see her for himself.

"Sure, I'll tell Danny and Grover."

They'll want to know. Chin left and went over to his car, put the key in the ignition and started driving toward Honolulu City. But it was a long way from where he was to Honolulu.

But soon he reached the hospital. He asked a nurse how he would get to Kono Kalakaua's hospital room. "Excuse me, but can you point me to Officer Kalakaua's room?" His feet tapped impatiently against the floor. The nurse sitting behind the computer looked up. "Are you family?" The nurse asked back. "Yeah, I am her cousin and emergency contact. So if you'd please tell me where I can find her… that would be nice." Chin replied. He wanted to see Kono. "A minute, please…" She looked something up in her computer. "She's in room 1622. Would you like to speak with the doctor who is familiar with her case as well? I can page him if you'd like." Chin only nodded. When he turned around, he saw a familiar figure standing behind him. "Adam, you're here. Who called you?" Adam cocked his head to the side.

"McGarrett did. Believe me, when I heard that Kono was lost in sea, I was so scared I would lose her. But when that call came …" He didn't finish the sentence, he didn't have to.

"Let's go." Chin simply said.

"I have her room number." Without another word, Adam was following him. When he'd found the right room, he softly knocked. "Come in." A weak voice from behind the door said. Chin opened the door, a small smile covered his face when he saw his cousin. She was there, alive and breathing. That was an immense relief for him.

"Chin, Adam." Kono exclaimed, a small smile was on her lips when she recognized these two. "We're here. We were worried about you, Kono." "I can only imagine." But her response was cut off by a yawn. "You're tired." Chin noted. "Spending the night on a stormy ocean will do that to you, coz." Kono countered. "Alright, coz, we'll let you sleep. You just focus on getting better." Chin was glad to see his cousin up and talking. Kono listened to him and almost immediately she was back asleep. You could clearly see that she was exhausted.

* * *

 _Surfing was for Kono an important part of her life. Her mother had introduced her into surfing at a very young age. She was like six or maybe seven. Little Kono sat on the sandy beach and was staring at the ocean. She was frustrated because she fell off her surfboard. It was a warm and sunny day. Waves slowly rolled up to the beach. It was simply idyllic. Every tourist would have said that. But Kono and her mother are locals. Her mother was walking toward her, a smile covering her face as she looked at her little girl. Palm trees were throwing shadows at the beach. "Kono…" Her mother called her. Wind flew through her hair. Kono avoided her mother's glance, partly ashamed that she fell off of it. That was embarrassing. "You did good, Kono." Her mother said._

 _That's when Kono looked up and resignedly replied: "I fell."_

 _Kono's mother smiled lightly before answering. She gave her daughter a piece of advice. "You are going to get knocked off of your board many times." She stopped for a moment before saying. "The only thing that matters is you get back up." She gently lifted up Kono's chin so that she was looking at her. Kono smiled at her mother in appreciation but never answered. Comfortable silence was between them._

 _For the time being, Kono and her mother just sat there on the sandy beach and were watching waves crash onto the shore._

 _The water was crystal blue and calm. Simply, it was the perfect day to practice surfing. After a few minutes that passed relatively quickly, at least it seemed that way, Kono suddenly stood up. Her mother watched her surprised. "Kono, what are you doing?" Kono reached for her board. She seemed small when she had it in her arms 'cause it was longer than she was. "I'm getting back on the board." She said innocently, like only a child could. "Can you help me?" She asked. "Sure thing, Kono, I'd love to do that." Her mother replied, happy that her words had such an impact on her, that she took her advice to heart._

 _Both of them waded through the water._

 _When the water was deep enough, Kono lay onto her surfboard and started paddling … "Start paddling, Kono. Just concentrate on what you're doing. Don't let others get to you. Just block them out. Concentrate." Her mother told her. Slowly, Kono blocked out her mother's voice and started paddling with her arms and legs._

* * *

"I'm so glad you okay, sistah. You got me worried there for a moment." Kamekona said after entering Kono's hospital room. Kono smiled faintly. She was still working on regaining her strength. But at some point it will be just fine, just as always. "Kamekona, it's so nice to see you." She said. Chin looked up and glanced at him for a moment. Traces of a smile were around his mouth. He was just glad that his cousin was here and alive and breathing. This could have ended differently. But it hadn't and he would be thankful for that forever. In some way, Kono got off lightly.

But before he could deepen the topic, Kamekona interrupted his thoughts.

"I got shrimps, brah." Kamekona said, directed to Chin Ho Kelly. "Really? Right now where you say it, I am really hungry." He laughed. In this moment someone else knocked on the door. Kono looked over at Kamekona. "I'm just curious." She said.

"How many people are coming as well?"

"The rest of Five-0." Chin answered in reply...


End file.
